Method of manufacturing endless belts



June 29, 1954 R. S. CARTER ET AL,

METHOD OF MANUFACTURING ENDLESS BELTS Original Filed Sept. 18, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet l QMW RAYMOND S. CARTER DECEASED,

BY MARY H. GARTER,E'XECUTRIX,

AND ELMER G. KIMMICH June 29, 1954 R, CARTER ET AL 2,682,293

METHOD OF MANUFACTURING ENDLESS BELTS Original Filed Sept. 18, 1945 3 Sheeis-Sheef 2 awe/WW RAYMOND S. CARTER,DECEA$ED,

BY MARY H. CARTER, EXECUTE/X,

AND ELMER G. KEMMICH June 29, 1954 R. s. CARTER ETAL ,682,293 METHOD OF MANUFACTURING ENDLESS BELTS Original Filed Sept. 18, 1945 Qwuwwtow RAYMOND S. CARTER, DECEASED, BY MARY H. CARTER, EXECUUPIX,

AND ELMER G. KIMMICHY 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented June 29, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF MANUFACTURING ENDLESS BELTS corporation of Ohio Original application September 18, 1945, Serial No. 617,046. Divided and this application December 28, 1949, Serial No. 135,382

(Cl. 15 l4) 6 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to a process for the manufacture of endless, reinforced belts and the like. More particularly, the invention is concerned with a method of building V-belts and other forms of belts embodying a strandular reinforcing such, for example, as cord, wire, cable,

and the like.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method which facilitates the manufacture of endless belts of the type embodying internal reinforcing material and according to which the belts are built up in inverted form and reversed upon completion.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method by which the completed belt may be readily removed from the supporting surface on which it is built without the necessity of disassembling the supporting member and without distorting the finished belt.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a novel and economical method of forming reinforced V-belts and the like and the apparatus for carrying out the process.

Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent as the detailed description of the invention proceeds.

Although the invention is capable of application to the manufacture of various types of belting and the like, it is particularly advantageously adapted to be employed in the fabrication of endless wire-reinforced V-belts and the like.

The method of the invention embodies the steps of applying the several elements of the belt over the joint defined by the segments comprising the supporting surface and, upon completion of the forming operation, consolidating the several elements, separating the segments, and removing the finished belt.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 represents a front elevation of a typical apparatus illustrating the teachings of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the machine of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an elevation on an enlarged scale of the strand feeding mechanism employed in the apparatus of Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section with parts in elevation and broken away illustrating the drive and separating mechanism associated with the building drum of the machine of Fig. 1. Figs. 5 to 8, inclusive, illustrate the several steps employed in the belt building operation.

In Fig. l, a typical form of apparatus embodying the teachings of the present invention and hereinafter referred to simply as a "drum former is designated generally by the reference character I. The drum former I has a frame 2 on which is mounted a housing member 3. The housing 3, as will best be seen from Fig. 4 of the drawings, is provided with a pair of spaced bearings 4 which are preferably of the antifriction type and support a hollow shaft I in rotatable relation. Surrounding the hollow shaft 1 is a sleeve 5 supported from the housing 3 as by means of a bushing 6 Within which the shaft is free to rotate.

The hollow shaft I has a spindle 8 extending through and comparatively loosely fitted in its inner bore 9. An annular passage III is cut in the inner periphery of the sleeve 5 and is provided with an opening II which extends through the wall of shaft 1 and communicates with the inner bore 9 thereof. A pipe connection I2 extends through the housing 3 and registers with the outlet I! so as to connect with the annular passage Hl in the sleeve 5. A pair of outlets Ila adjacent the other end of the spindle 8 extend through the Wall of the hollow shaft 1 and likewise communicate with the inner bore 9 thereof.

Packing rings I4 are advantageously inserted in the housing 3 and spaced on opposite sides of the outlet It for sealing the sleeve 5 with respect to its bushing 6. The pipe I2 is adapted to be connected to a supply of compressed air and is provided with a suitable valve I3 for controlling the introduction of air to the inner bore 9 of the hollow shaft '3. The packing rings I4 serve to prevent the escape of the air between the sleeve 5 and the bushing 6. This apparatus functions as an auxiliary means employed in the manner and for the purpose hereinafter to be described in detail.

A drum I5 is mounted upon the free end of the hollow shaft 1 extending beyond the housing 3 and comprises a cylindrical segment l6 which cooperates with a coaxially disposed generally disklike member or cap H to provide the building surface upon which the belts are fabricated. The cap it is secured as by means of a nut I8 to the end of the spindle 8 extending beyond the end of the hollow shaft I. The cap I I of the drum I5 is provided with an internally disposed hub portion I9 in which is disposed a bushing 20 which is adapted to insure slidable movement in an axial direction along the outer periphery of the free end of the hollow shaft I, as indicated in Figure 4.

The cylindrical segment I6 of the drum I5 is provided with an internally disposed hub portion 2! which is advantageously formed integrally with the web 22 of the said cylindrical segment 56. The web 22 of the cylindrical segment l6 cooperates with the cap I! to form internally of drum a closed chamber 23 with which the aforementioned outlets Ila extending through the Wall of the hollow shaft 1 to the bore 9 thereof communicate. The chamber 23 is made substantially air-tight by virtue of the interfitting relationship between the cap I! and the cy1indrical segment E6 of the drum 15. A substantial tongue and groove engagement, indicated generally by the reference character 21, is provided between the cylindrical segment 16 and the cap IT and serves to form the peripheral joint 28 on the external surface of the drum l5.

A collar portion 24 Which is advantageously formed integrally with the hollow shaft i and a jam nut 25 threaded upon the outer periphery of the hollow shaft l cooperate to confine the hub portion 2! of the cylindrical segment IS in the desired axial alinement on the hollow shaft against endwise displacement. A drive gear 25 is secured in any suitable fashion to the hub portion 2|. The hollow shaft 1 is retained in fixed axial relationship with respect to the housing 3 as by means of a nut 29 backed by a washer 3t and disposed adjacent to one of the bearings 4 in said housing. An integrally formed collar portion 3| on the spindle 8 is adapted to position a suitable bearing 32, which is advantageously of the anti-friction type. The bearing 32 is held in place on the spindle 8 against collar portion 3| by the nut 33 threaded on the end of said spindle.

A coupling unit 34 embodies a cup-shaped member 35 which is threaded onto the end of the piston shaft 36 projectin from the pneumatic cylinder 38 and cooperates with the cap 3! to form a housin for the bearing 32 mounted on the end of the spindle 8. Inlets 39 and supply fluid under pressure to the pneumatic cylinder 38 to actuate a piston (not shown) therein to produce an axial thrust upon the piston shaft 36 and through the coupling unit 34 to the spindle 8. The pneumatic cylinder 38 which is adapted to be controlled by a suitable valve unit (not shown) of a conventional type causes the spindle 8, by virtue of the action of the piston, either to retain the cylindrical segment [3 and the cap H in interfitting relation at the joint 28 therebetween or to separate the parts of the drum l5 at said joint.

A gear 4| mounted upon a drive shaft 42 which is rotatably supported by a pair of spaced bearings 43 mounted in a movable table 44 serves to mesh with the drive gear 25 on the hub portion 2! of the cylindrical segment l6 for driving the drum [5. The movable table 44 is advantageously adapted to be shifted from one position to another alon the upper portion of the frame 2 in order that the apparatus may be employed, by the substitution of a different size drive gear 26 and drum I5, to manufacture endless belts of various sizes. The movement of the table 44 is accomplished by the operation of the pinion 45 along the rack 46 which is accomplished by a demountable crank (not shown). By virtue of this construction, different building drums l5 of widely varying sizes may be employed with comparative ease and without the necessity of reconstructing the apparatus.

The drive shaft 42 actuating the driving gear 4| is directly coupled as by means of the coupling 41 to the output shaft 48 of a speed change mechanism 49 which is driven, in turn, by an electrical motor 50. The motor 50 is advantageously a twospeed, three-phase, induction motor capable of reversible operation. The motor 50 and the speed change mechanism 49 are mounted upon the movable table 44 so as to render them capable of shiftable movement along with the drive shaft 42 with which they are interconnected when it becomes necessary to change drum sizes. Suitable locking means (not shown) are employed to retain the movable table 44 in position against inadvertent shifting thereof when a specific size building drum l5 and its associated drivin gear 26 are mounted upon the machine.

A support 5| is secured to a portion of the frame 2 of the drum builder I and provides a mounting for a pair of guide plates 52 and 53 which are employed in directing the fabric and rubber materials to the drum l5 in the course of the belt building operations. The guide plate 53 is hingedly mounted upon the guide plate 52 in such a manner that it may be disposed in parallel and contiguous relation to the guide plate 52 when the latter, which is swingably mounted on the bracket 54, is in its horizontal position ready for use in the building operation. The bracket 54 has an adjusting screw 55 therein for adjustin the exact horizontal position of the guide plate 52 to insure its parallel relationship with respect to the axis of the drum l5. The bracket 54 has a pair of nuts 56 threaded thereon to enable it to be adjusted in a vertical direction with respect to the periphery of the drum l5 along the slot 51 in the support 5|.

A second support 58 is mounted upon the frame 2 of the drum builder I and is provided with a longitudinally extending slot 59 in which a bracket 60 is adjustably secured. A pair of rods GI and 62 disposed in parallel relation to each other and t0 the longitudinal axis of the buildin drum are carried by the bracket '80. A guide means or carriage 63 is employed in winding the reinforcing material onto the belt elements in the building operation. The carriage 13 which may advantageously take the form of a flat bar mounted transversely of a tubular portion is adapted to slide axially of the rod 62 has been illustrated in detail in Fig. 3 of the drawings.

The carriage 63 supports a guide eye 64 which is arranged to be adjustably secured to the tubular portion thereof. A handle 65 is attached to the carriage 63 together with a block 66 having a serrated face thereon. The grooved face of the block 56 is adapted to mesh with a helical thread 6'! cut into the external periphery of the cylindrical segment l6 of the building drum [5. Thus, when the handle 65 is manually held down by the operator in the course of the building operation, the block 66 is caused to ride in the endless groove comprising the helical thread 61 thereby advancing the carriage 63 progressively in an axial direction along the rod 62 upon which it is slidably mounted.

An arm 68 is attached to the end of the tubular portion of the carriage 63 and is 50 disposed that the rod 6| passes through at the ends thereof. A knurled headed screw 69 is threaded into one of the bent end portions of the arm 68 in such a fashion that it may be adjusted in a direction parallel to the axis of the rods BI and 62 being arranged in parallel relation and adjacent to the rod 6 l. A coil spring 10 extends around a portion of the rod 6|, being confined between the bent portion of the arm '68 in which the screw 69 is threaded, and the face of the bracket 60. The spring 10 is caused to be compressed as the carriage 63, upon engagement of the block 66 with the helical thread 6'! on the drum I5, is moved axially of the rod 62. This action of the spring 10 enables the return of the carriage 63 to its original starting position, when the block 66 is disengaged from the helical thread 61 by releasing of the handle 65 by the operator.

The screw 69 is so adjusted in the bent end portion of the arm 68 on the carriage 53 that the head thereof will actuate an electrical switch ll mounted upon the bracket til, thereby acting as a limit means to control the extent 'of lateral movement of the carriage (see 3). The nib 12 of the switch H is so disposed that it will be depressed upon contact with the head of the screw 69 when the carriage 63 has reached the extremity of its axial movement which corre sponds with the completion of the application of the reinforcing material. A pair of electrical connections 13 serve to connect the switch "Ii into the electrical circuit of the drum builder l in such a way as to cause the rotationof the drum I5 to stop when a suflicient length of the wire reinforcing material has been applied to the elements of the belt being built upon the surface of the drum.

In order to insure disengagement of the block 66 on carriage 63 with respect to the helical. thread 61 on the cylindrical segment H5 of the drum i5 and after the winding operation is completed, a counterweight M is provided on the end of the arm portion of the carriage 63, as will best be seen in Fig. 2 of the drawings. The counterweight M causes the carriage 63 to swing about the rod 62 on which it is slidably supported and simultaneously actuates a switch 75 mounted on the bracket 60 adjacent thereto. The switch '15 is so disposed that the nib 76 thereof will be depressed by the end of the arm portion of the carriage 63 as long as the counterweight 14 causes the carriage $3 to be tilted backward with the block 66 out of contact with the helical thread 61.

During this interval, when the reinforcing material is not being fed to the drum [5, the switch 15 which is connected into the circuit controlling the rotation of the drum is closed, thereby permitting the control mechanisms (not shown) to actuate the building drum l5 either in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction, depending upon the desire of the operator. However, during the time when the reinforcing material is b ing fed through the guide eye 64 of the carriage 63 to the building drum i5, or in other words, when the handle 65 is depressed so as to cause the block 66 to engage the thread 67, the nib E6 of the switch 15 will be released. That portion of the control circuit embodying the switch 15 will thus be opened preventing the rotation of the drum H5 in a direction opposite to that required for the winding on of the reinforcing material.

The operation of the switches ii and 15, both of which may advantageously take the form of microswitches or the like, will best be understood from the description of the operation of the drum builder I which follows.

The reinforcing material employed in the fabrication of the belts is supplied from a reel "it which is mounted in any suitable fashion upon the frame 2 of the drum builder l. A braking device is which is secured to the frame 2 and takes the form of a fabric strip supporting a weight on the end thereof coacts with the supply reel 18 to permit the reinforcing material to be fed to the drum IE, but at the same time acts to retain it in taut'relationship as it is being withdrawn therefrom. A suitable tensioning guide 80, a pair of guide rollers 8|, an eye 82, and a pair of roller guides 83 and M are disposed between the supply reel 18 and the drum A5 to enable the strandular reinforcing material to pass freely to the guide eye 64 on the carriage 63 during the winding operation.

In order to enable the several elements comprising the endless belts being built upon the surface of the drum l5 to be compressed or consolidated into a unitary structure, there is provided a compressor roll or stitcher 85 which is freely rotatably mounted upon a swingable arm 86 supported by a bracket 81 from the frame 2 of the drum builder l. A handle 88 provided on the swingable arm 86 adjacent the stitcher 85 enables the operator to bring the roll in contact withthe belt materials during the assembling operation. An adjustable screw 89 is provided on the frame adjacent the bracket 8! to adjust the location of the swingable arm 86 so as to raise and lower the stitcher 85 with respect to the periphery of the drum.

In the operation of the apparatus of the invention, any suitable form of electrical wiring circuit may be employed to energize and interconnect, in operative association, the various control switches as well as the prime mover, motor 5b. The operation of the drum M3 by the motor 5t may be controlled by a number of con ventional foot operated switches (not shown). An arrangement embodying three such switches is preferable in order that one will control the energization of the motor 50, which is, as previously indicated, of the two-speed, reversible type, to rotate the drum in a direction to'uard theoperator while the other two will cause the drum to be rotated away from the operator, one at a low speed and the other at a high speed. A conventional start-stop switch (not shown) controls entire circuit.

Let us assume that the operator has just completed the building of a belt and removed it from the drum I5, thus, placing the machine in readiness for the next building operation. The valve unit operating the pneumatic cylinder 38 is actuated to introduce air under pressure through inlet 40 to the cylinder moving the piston therein toward the left and bringing the ll into engagement with the end of the cylindrical segment it of the drum l5 and closing the joint 28 therein. The drum I5 is now ready for the application of the belt building materials.

First, a flat fabric envelope 96, preferably comprising two plies of rubberized fabric material, is applied to the surface of the drum E5 in the manner indicated in Fig. 5. The joint 23 of the drum l5 advantageously bisects the width of the envelope 98 so that the envelope straddles the joint 28. The fabric strips of the envelope 90 are guided into place by feeding the material through the slot 9| in the lowermost guide plate 52 with the plate 53 tilted back out of the way. As the operator guides the material over plate 52, the appropriate control switch or pedal (not shown) for energizing the motor 56 is depressed, causing the drum [5 to rotate in a direction away from the operator so that the fabric winds onto the drum.

The guide plate 53 is then lowered into position on the plate 52 and a relatively thin gum strip 92 (see Fig. 5) is applied to the outermost surface of the envelope 30 by feeding the strip through a slot 93 on plate 53. During the guiding of the gum strip 92 into place, the drum is again rotated in a direction away from the operator. After the gum strip 92 has been applied and any excess material cut off the end so as to effect a smooth joint between the ends, the operator may bring the stitcher 85 into contact, with the material by grasping the handle 88 and holding the swingable arm 80 in its uppermost position.

After the gum strip 92 has been intimately compressed against the fabric envelope 90, the operator grasps the free end of the wire 94, to be employed as the reinforcing material in the belt, and with a small portion of gum secures the wire end in place adjacent the left hand edge of the gum strip 92. The operator then grasps the handle 65 of the carriage 63, depressing the same and bringing the serrated face of the block ('5 into engagement with the helical thread *8? on drum [5 in the manner indicated in Fig. 5. The drum I5 is then rotated in a direction toward the operator by the actuation of the proper control switch or pedal (not shown) and the thread 6? causes the carriage 63 to move toward the right a seen in Fig. 5, guiding the wire 9% through the guide eye 64 and forming a helix of wire about the gum strip 92.

As a safety measure, the depressing of the handle causes the counterweight 'M (Fig. 2 on carriage 63 to be lifted out of contact with the nib E6 of the electrical switch E5. The switch E5 is advantageously so connected into the electrical operating circuit of the machine that the electrical connections to both of the previously mentioned control switches or pedals (not shown) for actuating the motor to drive the drum l5 in a direction away from the operator are broken. Thus, during the wire winding operation the drum l5 cannot be inadvertently rotated in the wrong direction.

The winding operation and the axial movement of the carriage 63 continues until the head of the adjusting screw 59, previously manually adjusted to provide a wire helix of a length sufficient to substantially cover the gum strip 92, strikes the nib T2 of the switch H. At this point in the operation, the nib T2 of the switch 'H is depressed and, by reason of the fact that the switch is so connected into the electrical operating circuit of the machine that it controls the energization of the motor 5!], the circuit to the motor will be broken and the drum I5 will automatically cease rotation. The operator then releases the handle 65 and the counterweight 'l l swings the carriage 63 to once again depress the nib N5 of\ switch 15 bringing the other controls into the circuit in readiness for the succeeding operations.

The operator now cuts the wire 94 and secures the free end in place by a piece of gum rubber after which the whole is advantageously compressed by a stitcher roll. Next the flexible cushion strip 95 is applied over the completed helix of wire 94. The strip 95 is preferably of vertically tapered cross section as, for example, in the form of a symmetrical trapezoid with the shortest of the parallel sides uppermost. As before, the strip 95 is guided to the drum I5 through the slot 93 in plate 53 and the control switch or pedal is operated to rotate the drum E5 in a direction away from the operator.

After the several belt materials have been properly compressed by suitable manual stitching means or the stitcher 85 as desired, the operator then turns or folds the lateral edge portions of the envelope inwardly to cover the gum strip 92, wire 94, and cushion 95. The envelope 90 now completely covers the exterior of the finished belt in the manner indicated in Fig. '7. The completed belt 96 will have the inverted form shown in Fig. 8 and will have been completely stitched and smoothed. The drum l5 will advantageously be rotated at high speed in a direction away from the operator by depressing the appropriate control pedal (not shown) during the final stitching operation.

The operator now operates the valve unit controlling the operation of the pneumatic cylinder 38 releasing or shifting the position of the piston to the right and disengaging the cap I! from cylindrical segment N5 of the drum [5 (see Fig. 8). In this manner, the finished inverted belt 96 can easily be buttonholed oif the unsupported end of the drum [5. The belt will then be turned inside out or reversed and is then ready for use.

If, for any reason, the belt 96 is so tightly engaged with the surface of the drum [5 that the cap ll will not freely separate from the cylindrical segment 16, the valve [3 may be opened introducing air under pressure to the changer 23 formed internally of the drum [5 (see Fig. 4) and forcing the segments l5 and I1 apart. The air is caused to pass from the pipe I2 around the annular passage I0, through outlet]! into bore 9 of hollow shaft 1 along the spindle 8 and out through outlets Ha into the chamber 23.

This application is a division of the Carter and Kimmich application Serial No. 617,046 filed September 18, 1945, now United States Patent 2,510,553.

While certain representative embodiments and details have been shown for the purpose of illustrating the invention, it wil1 be apparent to those skilled in this art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

We claim:

1. In the manufacture of a single endless reinforced V-belt in inverted form upon a rotatable supporting surface characterized by a pair of 'coaxially arranged separable segments forming a joint therebetween, the method comprising the steps of laying a flat fabric envelope substantially directly over the separable joint in the supporting surface; applying a gum strip upon the fabric envelope; winding a strandular reinforcing material in the form of a helix upon the gum strip; applying a flexible cushion having a substantially tapered cross-section upon the reinforcing material; folding the envelope to enclose the assembled elements completely; separating the segments of the supporting surface; and buttonholing the finished belt over one of said segments whereby the belt may be reversed without distortion.

2. In the manufacture of a single endless reinforced V-belt in inserted form employing a generally cylindrical drum characterized b a pair of coaxially disposed separable segments forming a circumferential joint thcrebetween, the method comprising the steps of laying a multiple ply flat fabric envelope substantially centrally of and directly over the joint in the drum; applying a gum rubber strip upon the fabric envelope; winding a metallic strandular reinforcing material over the gum strip in the form of a helix; covering the reinforcing material with a rubber cushion having an inverted, generally V-shaped cross-section; folding the envelope inwardly to enclose com pletely the several assembled elements; and sepa- 9 rating the drum segments to enable the finished belt to be passed over one of said segments whereby the belt may be turned inside out Without distortion.

3. In the manufacture of a single endless belt upon a rotatable supporting surface embodying a pair of coaxially arranged separable segments having a joint therebetween, the method comprising the steps of assembling the materials of which the belt is to be composed on the supporting surface at the joint defined by the segments; compressing the several materials into a finished endless belt; separating the segments to free the finished belt from the supporting surface; and removing the belt by passing the same over one of the segments.

4. In the manufacture of a single endless belt upon a rotatable supporting surface embodying a pair of coaxially arranged separable segments having a joint therebetween, the method comprising the steps of assembling the materials of which the belt is to be composed on the supporting surface at the joint defined by the segments; compressing the several materials into a finshed endless belt; separating the segments to free the finished belt from the supporting surface, thereb causing the finished belt to slip off the supporting surface and between the separated segments and removing the belt by passing the same over one of the segments.

5. In the manufacture of a single endless belt upon a rotatable supporting surface embodying a pair of coaxially arranged separable segments supported from one and the same end only thereof and having a joint therebetween, the method comprising the steps of assembling the materials of which the belt is to be composed on the supporting surface at the joint defined by the segments; compressing the several assembled materials into a finished endless belt; separatin the segments axially at the joint therebetween, thereby freeing the finished belt from the supporting surface and causing the belt to be disposed between the segments; and removing the belt by passing it over the outermost segment.

6. In the manufacture of a single endless belt employing a generally cylindrical drum embodying a pair of coaxially disposed separable cylindrical segments supported from one end only thereof forming a circumferential joint therebetween, the method comprising the steps of assembling in order the several materials of which the belt is to be composed on the drum straddling the joint in the drum; compressing the materials together into a finished endless belt; separating the drum segments axially at the joint therebetween, thereby causing the finished belt to be disposed between the segments; and removing the belt by passing it over the outermost drum segment.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,805,032 Berwick May 12, 1931 1,911,185 Gates May 30, 1933 1,969,067 Freeman Aug. 7, 1934 2,439,043 Evans Apr. 6, 1948 2,510,553 Carter et a1 June 6, 1950 

